U.S. Army Soldier Arrested for Using Classified Intel to Bet on Maduro's Capture on Polymarket

Gate News message, April 24 — The U.S. Department of Justice has arrested active-duty Army soldier Gannon Ken Van Dyke, 38, on charges of using confidential information to place bets on Polymarket, a prediction market, regarding former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s capture. Van Dyke participated in planning and executing the January military operation that led to Maduro’s detention.

On January 3, President Donald Trump announced that U.S. forces had taken Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, into custody. That same day, a Polymarket account wagered that Maduro would be “out” by month’s end, netting $400,000. Prosecutors say Van Dyke created his Polymarket account in December and began trading on Venezuela and Maduro-related markets despite having signed nondisclosure agreements.

Van Dyke made 13 bets totaling over $33,000 in investments, including wagers on whether Maduro would be removed by the end of January and when the U.S. would invade Venezuela. From these trades, he profited approximately $409,881 and later attempted to conceal his identity by requesting Polymarket delete his account.

Van Dyke faces three counts of violating the Commodity Exchange Act, one count of wire fraud, and one count of unlawful monetary transaction, with a maximum sentence of 60 years in prison. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission also filed a parallel civil complaint seeking disgorgement, restitution, and civil penalties. “The defendant was entrusted with confidential information about U.S. operations and yet took action that endangered U.S. national security,” said CFTC Chair Michael Selig.

Polymarket stated it identified the user trading on classified information and referred the matter to the DOJ, cooperating fully with the investigation. The arrest has sparked legislative efforts to restrict certain government officials and clearance holders from making bets on prediction markets related to government policy.